Discovering Sheldon Cooper
by bookwormtsb
Summary: Penny finally discovers who Sheldon Cooper really is and all it takes is a tuxedo, a shopping trip, a tattoo and a broken down car.
1. Chapter 1

"Penny?" Sheldon said over his shoulder quietly.

"Hmm yeah?" I asked and looked up from the latest issue of Cosmo.

"Will you look away while I change?" I nodded and returned to the double page spread about Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt.

I guess I should back-up a bit and explain why I was watching, or should I say not watching beautiful mind Sheldon Lee Cooper change.

We had just been shopping for a tuxedo for Sheldon, and seeing as all the guys and Amy had bagsied not to take him I'd been forced into finding him something suitable to wear to some Symposium thing-y. We'd gone to the local mall and after Sheldon deemed all of it _un_suitable we'd had to trek to the next town in the hopes of finding something that both of us approved of. For Sheldon, something that wouldn't make him look like a clown and for me, something that wasn't plaid. So we'd headed off to the Glendale Galleria in the hope of finding something appropriate. And, surprisingly, we had. A simple, understated black tux with a classy fitted dress shirt and black silk bowtie. What was even more surprising was how handsome Sheldon looked in it. He'd gained quite a bit weight recently so he didn't look like a gangly teenager going to junior prom anymore. No, he looked like a distinguished man. Of course, I'd never admit any of this to him. So then we'd had to deal with getting Sheldon a few extra supplies, I refused to let him wear his stupid tidy whities with that tux and he refused to not wear an undershirt. So we'd chosen three pairs of black Calvin Klein boxers and a skintight white undershirt. On the way home we'd gotten lost, due to the fact that it was now about 9pm and dark and also that we'd been arguing over something stupid, as per usual. That's when we'd ended up in the middle of god knows where and no fuel in the tank. Oh, I forgot to mention, neither of our mobiles had any service so we were stranded. I'd pushed down the back seats and lain out all my emergency blankets to make a bed of sorts. So that's it, you're up to speed.

'Penny?" Sheldon asked again and I looked up. "I'm about to get changed, please avert your gaze." I rolled my eyes and pretended to look back down at my magazine. I was, to say the least, curious. Curious as to what lay beneath the geeky t-shirts and long sleeved undershirts. Hey, don't look at my like that! They guy had seen me naked, so it's only fair that I get to see the de-robed physicist. Sheldon was on his knees in our makeshift bed with his back to me. He slowly peeled off his green lantern t-shirt and folded it neatly at the end of the bed. I glanced down at my magazine as he turned around slightly. I looked back up only to see that he'd removed half of his undershirt. The rest came off with a little bit of difficulty tugging it over his head, which was pressed forward due to his height and the height of my car. He discarded it and fumbled around for his new undershirt and boxers. I gasped inaudibly. Sheldon Cooper was more than kinda hot shirtless. He was pale, sure. But it wasn't weight he'd gained no, it was muscle. The whole area across his shoulder blades was ripped with tight muscles and he had prominent dimples just above the waistline of his underwear. That however wasn't the thing that took me, that was the tattoo. Yes, you heard me right, our Moonpie had a TATTOO. In the centre of his back, just between his shoulder blades there was a delicately drawn key with elaborate wings.

"You have a tattoo?" I asked without thinking and Sheldon span round to face me. Which revealed a deliciously sculpted abdomen and pecks that weren't quite Abercrombie worthy but still unexpected and hot. His eyes were as wide as saucers.

"You said you'd close your eyes!" He retaliated and pulled his white shirt over his head dramatically.

"Coming back at you with, you have a tattoo?" Sheldon was turning an angry sort of red. He shook his head in disbelief and disappeared under the green plaid blanket. I sighed and tipped my head back against the headrest. It was getting pretty late anyway. I climbed over the seat and onto my half of the makeshift bed. Sheldon, in his sulk was way over on the other side of the bed curled in a ball. I slipped in-between the blankets and tried to get comfortable even though my pillow was a totally cute brown leather handbag. I stretched up and flicked off the lights above the dashboard. I could just hear Sheldon's quiet breathing and the sound of my heart bashing against my chest. I don't think Sheldon really realised the inappropriateness of us sharing a bed. Leonard was going to flip when he found out in the morning. Just because we were sharing a bed didn't mean we were _sleeping together. _It was nothing. I pulled my knees up and stared into the darkness.

"Penny?" His voice was so quiet that I could have imagined it. "Penny?" He repeated even more quietly. He sounded sleepy and kind of defenceless, which was pretty rare for Sheldon. "Mmm yeah Moonpie?" I replied equally as sleepily. I could hear the sound of him shifting closer towards me.

"I got my tattoo when I was 16." There was a silence that stretched comfortably between us.

"Why?" My voice cracked slightly.

"I was in love." If I wasn't sufficiently surprised by Sheldon having a tattoo, the knowledge that he was capable of loving anything apart from his spot and science could have knocked me dead. I didn't dare say anything; I knew he'd go on. "We were stupidly in love. I had just got my PhD and had a life of greatness planned ahead of me. She was an experimental physicist, her name was Lexi and she wore sweaters and drank coffee. She had curly hair the colour of toffee. We dated for a year and it was magical. We lived on campus in rooms next to each other." His words just sort of hung in the air in-between us.

"What happened Sheldon?" I asked quietly and slowly put my hand in the gap between our bodies.

"She got sick, really sick." That's all it needed. Sheldon's heaving chest and quiet sobs told the rest of the story. I didn't even notice when his hand found mine in the dark and we quietly lay there. "The key represented how she set me free and the wings represented how she's now free." I could feel my own eyes stinging with tears. "I've never told Leonard any of this Penny and I would appreciate it if this was to stay between us."

"Of course Sheldon."

We were silent for a long time after that. His hand felt so right in mine, I may have Nebraskan man-hands but Sheldon was 6"2 and had pretty huge Texan man-hands himself. "Penny?" His voice was gentle and soothing. "Is it wrong to have feelings for someone else?"  
"What sweetie?"

"Would Lexi be mad at me if I had feelings for someone else?"

"Of course not sweetie. It's been a long time and she would have wanted you to be happy..." I trailed off "Is this about Amy?" Sheldon shifted slightly and didn't reply. Then I felt hot breath in my ear and turned to face him slightly. A pair of slightly chapped lips collided with mine. His left hand found the back of my neck and his long fingers tangled in my hair as he deepened the kiss. His teeth bit down hard on my bottom lip and I fell against him slightly. My hands pressed up against his hard chest and our legs were entwined with each other and the different plaid blankets. I felt him smile suddenly against my lips. "I haven't kissed anyone like that in a long, long time."

Later on Sheldon opened the sunroof and I lay curled against his side as he pointed out the different constellations. Suddenly I was glad that everyone was so apprehensive to take Sheldon shopping so that I could have these series of perfect moments to remember. The day I discovered Sheldon Cooper.


	2. Chapter 2

I was wrong. That wasn't the day I discovered Sheldon Cooper. I only discovered a tiny little bit about him. I kept discovering him every time I saw him. Like the day he turned up at my door in a button down shirt and jeans with a bouquet of Penny Blossoms and asked me out for dinner. Or the first time we showered together. Or even the time he dropped to one knee and presented a beautiful engagement ring about a year ago. The guy had an infinite amount of dimensions and about 99% of them were unchartered territory.

"Penny?" His voice, which carried from the other side of the door, interrupted my train of thought.

"Sheldon?" I asked confused. He wasn't meant to see me!

"Penny?" He asked again slightly more loudly. I patted down my dress and hurried across to the door. I prised the lock across and the door swung open to reveal Sheldon Lee Cooper leaning against the doorframe in an elegant black tuxedo. Coincidentally, the one we bought him that time at the Glendale Galleria. "I couldn't go without seeing you." He said simply and shrugged casually. I giggled and stuck my head out in the corridor.

"Amy and Bernadette will kill me if they see you here! It's bad luck!" I looked both ways while he laughed at my concern.

"Then those Nebraskan man-hands of yours will finally come to good use." He quipped and I faux slapped his arm playfully. "I was wondering if you wanted to come down to the restaurant for some tea and snicker doodles?" I raised an eyebrow at him.

"We're not married yet Moonpie." He rolled his eyes and took my hand.

"Practice," He said as he led me out of the door so I was standing in front of him.

"Makes perfect," I finished.

"Penny, I have an IQ of 187 I highly doubt that-" I shut him up with a kiss. His hands wrapped around my waist and picked me up so that my back was against the doorframe, I wrapped my legs around his waist and deepened the kiss. "I love you." He murmured and my lips vibrated slightly. I laughed and broke off the kiss. He slid his arm around my shoulders and carried me into the suite as I nuzzled against his neck

"I love you too." I said as he dropped to the bed and transferred my weight so that I was sitting in his lap.

"Dr. and Mrs. Cooper." I said as he kissed my neck gently.

"Not for another hour." He replied and stared straight into my eyes.

"Jeez Sheldon we've been acting like a married couple since the day we met!" He laughed. Not the breathy, asthmatic laugh he'd had all those years ago. As a sentiment to how much he'd actually changed he had a proper, belly-rumbling laugh and let his hair grow out. He didn't even wear superhero t-shirts anymore. The superhero t-shirt wearing Sheldon was a different Sheldon; maybe one of the other Sheldon's in the 29 parallel universes. Maybe he was the dancing one. But I had my Moonpie in a tuxedo sitting in a posh Pasadena hotel with me, his soon to be wife sitting on his lap.


	3. Chapter 3

_I snuggled down deeper into the king sized hotel room bed. Last night, had been, to say the least, exhausting, if you catch my drift. Will you quit looking at me like that? It was our wedding night after all, so the rulebook says it's ok. I was finally Mrs. Penny Cooper; Leonard was always saying that we behaved like a married couple anyway but being married was different. It felt so grown up and mature. I mean, I know we're into our 30s but being married felt like we were finally grown ups. The shower turned off in the bathroom and the screen door slammed. A moment later Sheldon appeared in the doorway in a haze of steam with a towel around his narrow hips. He crossed over to the dresser and pulled on a pair of chequered boxers, as he stood up I caught sight of the tattoo that I loved so much. I don't know why, probably because it was the trigger for our first kiss three years ago. So much had changed since then, life was entirely different and for the better. I was suddenly catapulted back to that night._

"What star is that Penny?" Sheldon asked and jabbed his long finger at the dark sky.

"I don't know Moonpie." I mumbled dreamily and nuzzled against his neck. Everything that had happened tonight seemed surreal and I couldn't quite get my head around the fact that I had kissed Sheldon Cooper, SHELDON LEE COOPER, my favourite Whack-a-doodle and Moonpie. I looked up at him; he was staring contentedly at the sky with the expression of a kid in a sweet shop. I sighed and wrapped my arm around his waist before drifting off to sleep.

When I woke up I had a terrible crick in my neck and Sheldon was nowhere to be seen. I rolled onto my front and pushed my tangled hair out of my eyes. The car windows were covered in condensation; I reached up and drew a lopsided smiley face with my index finger. I immediately regretted it as dewy drops of ice cold water trickled down my hand. I pulled the blankets up to my chin and stared at my dripping smiley face. _Where on Earth was Sheldon?_ I briefly entertained the notion that maybe he'd freaked out after last night and ran off. _Was my morning breath seriously that bad? _ Then I heard the door car door slamming shut and a rosy-cheeked Sheldon sat down in the front seat. He turned to face me and smiled awkwardly. "Penny, we have to get back to Pasadena soon. It's 7 am and I've missed Dr. Who." I laughed slightly before rolling my eyes and muttering, "Sure thing Moonpie."

To sum life after that up in a word, I'd have to go with either confusing or maybe awkward. It's was a 50/50 sort of thing. Sheldon was _dating _Amy Farrah Fowler and yes, that is in italics because it wasn't really dating in the conventional sense or at least dating, as I knew it at least. Sheldon was in a fairly committed relationship with someone else. It was confusing because I'd kissed an untouchable but said untouchable had a girlfriend who just so happened to be my bestie. Sheldon stopped talking to me almost all together, he even stopped doing his laundry at precisely 6pm every Saturday, which was, to say the least _seriously _weird. Sheldon _despised _changing even the tiniest little thing about his schedule. There was a sharp knock on the door that caused me to jump back from the sink where I'd been pouring a glass of wine, I was _stressed, _okay. I set down the glass of white wine, or _maybe _jug was more appropriate but hey ho, and made my way to the door. I stood on my tiptoes to see through the peephole. Sheldon. Oh God, I tugged the bolt across and allowed the door to swing open. His head was bowed and his hands were shoved in the pockets of his beige chinos. Sheldon looked up, his eyes were slightly red-rimmed, "Amy and I terminated our relationship." Sheldon gently reached out and took my hand in his. I grabbed his wrist and dragged him into the apartment.

"SHELDON!" I screeched and he recoiled slightly, "Why did you dump Amy? I can't believe that you'd just, oh God; it wasn't to do with that kiss was it? I have to get over there now-" As I started to go off on a tangent Sheldon interrupted me.

"It was Amy's decision to terminate our relationship. She wanted more," He paused and looked embarrassed, " sexually." I blushed as I remembered Sheldon's long fingers caught in my hair and his tongue exploring my mouth. He opened his mouth to continue but obviously decided against it. Sheldon stared at his sneakers as I battled with my morals. I decided to heck it and closed the relatively small gap between our bodies. My lips found his and my breasts crashed against his chest. Sheldon's lips tasted like inhalers and mouthwash, his hair smelt like talc powder and 'no tears' shampoo. One of his hands wrapped around the back of my neck and the other hung limply at his side. I broke off the kiss and his eyelids fluttered open against my cheek. "This is a secret Sheldon, you can't tell anyone," He opened his mouth to argue, "Not even Leonard okay?" He nodded and exhaled deeply. I gently moved his arm away from my neck, Sheldon pouted slightly. "This is wrong, you know that don't you?" I said shakily to which he nodded. Sheldon took a step backwards, "Leonard will be wondering where I've gone." I gently leaned in and pressed my lips against his jaw. It felt oddly intimate; Sheldon closed his eyes and smiled slightly. "I'll see you later."

_"Penny?" Sheldon said as he sat down on the bed next to me._

_"Yeah Moonpie?" He pursed his lips at the pet name and pushed my hair out of my eyes gently._

_"We're taking a boat around the island at noon." He murmured quietly, "Breakfast starts in ten minutes precisely Penny." I nodded sluggishly and climbed out of bed slowly. I wrapped the bed sheet around my waist and started towards the bathroom. Ready to start married life to Sheldon Cooper, my Moonpie._


	4. Chapter 4

_My eyes were tightly closed but the hot sun was still searing through my eyelids. I opened my eyes a fraction and grabbed a magazine from the pile beside me before placing it open over my face. The waves lapped against the hull of our little yacht as Sheldon gently steered us round the island._

I hadn't seen Sheldon since our second kiss and I missed him. I missed the feeling of his soft, original flavour chapsticked lips and his gentle touch. It was almost like we were having an affair, except both of us were single. We were kind of like friends with benefits, more than friends but less than benefits. Tonight however was vintage video game night. So I'd be able to see him, just not alone. We'd have to act normal. No problem for me, I was an actress after all. Sheldon however, had basically had a meltdown last time he'd attempted acting, I recalled with a smile as I pulled on an oversized Huskers t-shirt and my skinniest jeans. I looked laidback and relaxed, perfect, I decided as I turned away from the mirror and out into the living room of my apartment. I was just sliding my feet into a cute pair of pumps when I heard Sheldon's signature knock on my door. I answered the door with a smile, which quickly slid off my face. It was Leonard, he was holding up his iPhone, which was on its recording app, well that explained the knock I thought. Leonard had swapped his usual t-shirt, hoodie and jacket combo for a shirt and jeans. "Hiya Penny," he smiled nervously as he slid his phone back into his pocket.

"Hey Leonard," I replied casually and leant against the doorframe.

"I was wondering if you wanted to come out to dinner with me tonight, like on a date," he stumbled out and smiled weakly. I felt like crying out- _"NO I DON'T WANT TO GO DOWN THAT PATH AGAIN!" _

But I didn't. Instead I smiled sadly and stared at my shoes, "Sorry sweetie, I really don't think it'd be a good idea for us to date..." I trailed off as Leonard's smile suddenly disappeared. His features took on this sort of angry grimace, a face I knew very well, but not from Leonard. I'd seen Kurt pull that very expression probably a thousand times. It was the expression he'd pull just before he exploded. It was the first time I'd seen Leonard this angry, not even when he was mad at Sheldon had he been this angry.

"WHY NOT?" He demanded angrily and took a step towards me. "You know what Penny, just save it. I don't want to hear your crappy excuses, because you're more than happy to sleep with the random guys you bring back here or kiss guys in clubs but you won't date me. I'm not a bad guy you know but you've completely screwed up every time we've dated because you're a commitment-phobe. You're scared of going out for a meal with the guy from across the hall because that's a lot more serious than _sleeping _with someone you've just met. You may think you're some sort of relationship guru just because you're pretty and easy but in all honestly you're just a slut who's worse at maintaining a relationship than _Sheldon!" _I was left speechless by his angry tirade. Then Leonard did something completely unexpected, he stepped forward and kissed me hard on the mouth. His mouth worked against mine as his tongue blazed across the inside of my cheek. I tried to push him off by pressing hard against his chest, but that just seemed to encourage him as his hands locked around my waist and he started walking me into the apartment. I tried to close my mouth and shove him off but he had me in an iron grip. _Oh God. _I thought, _Leonard wouldn't actually take this any further would he? _I was terrified. Leonard felt so wrong. His body was soft in all the places where it should be hard with muscle, his hands were too small and were holding me all wrong, his mouth wasn't moving like Sheldon's. I whimpered, terrified. That's when suddenly there was a loud bang and Leonard let go of me completely. I stumbled back a couple of paces and tripped over my own feet. Leonard was still standing. Sheldon had come to my rescue, my physicist in shining armour. Then out of nowhere Sheldon's fist connected with the side of Leonard's jaw. Something made a horrible cracking sound as Leonard collapsed with his hands cradling his face. I felt myself gag involuntarily as Leonard stood up and stumbled out of the apartment. His face was a bloody mess.

"Sheldon?" I rasped and Sheldon hurried over.

"Penny?"

"Yeah?" I asked as I felt tears sting at my eyes.

"Are you okay?" his face was full of genuine concern as he tenderly put his arm around my shoulders and cradled my body against his.

"Physically yeah," I replied and finally let the tears roll down my cheeks as I deteriorated into sobs that racked my whole body. "You probably think I'm really _hic _stupid," I cried.

"What? No of course I don't think you're stupid. I think that Leonard is stupid for two reasons. One, he's only an experimental physicist and two, he hurt you," he lowered his voice and bowed down so his mouth was by my ear. "I won't let anyone hurt you ever again."

Later that night I was washing my face in front of the mirror and gently removing my make up. I was still a bit shaken after the whole debacle but it had happened before with Kurt, I was strong, I knew how to deal with guys like that. There was a knock at my door. I involuntarily shuddered.

"Penny, it's me, Sheldon." His quiet voice drifted under the door. I hurried across to answer it. Sheldon was standing outside my door in just his pyjamas. "I don't think you should be alone tonight," He declared.

That night we shared a bed again. My bed was only a single so we had to lie curled around each other. I'm pretty sure as I was slowly drifting off to sleep I heard him quietly murmuring, "Soft kitty, warm kitty, little ball of fur. Happy kitty, sleepy kitty, purr purr purr."

_"Penny?" Sheldon called out and I jerked awake, the magazine slid off my face. I cleared my throat and rubbed my eyes, how long had I been asleep? "You have words on your face." He said, laughing lightly._

_"What?" I asked and subconsciously ran my hand across my face._

_"The magazine, the words got rubbed off onto your face." He giggled; his laughter was turning into a full scale laughing fit._

_"Well what does it say?" I demanded._

_"It says..." He said slowly, squinting his eyes and leaning in, "Do not fall asleep in the sun because it will make you look like a complete idiot." Then he gently leant in a kissed me on the mouth before dissolving into laughter falling off the boat and into the sea_.


	5. Chapter 5

_Sheldon dunked a spoonful of sugar into his tea and took a cautious sip. _

"_Mmm," I raised my eyebrow, "the tea's good, really good." I nodded and added two spoonfuls into my own cup. I took a gulp; it scalded my throat but tasted good. I watched the waves roll over the white sand beach as Sheldon moved onto the buttering of his croissant. The small Caribbean island felt so far away from the busy streets of Pasadena that you wouldn't even believe you were on the same planet. I picked up a piece of toast and took a huge bite. _

I'd never had a relationship like the one between Sheldon and me. Probably because it was so secretive, it was strange, really we had nothing to hide, and since when were two adults not allowed to date? But then again I didn't want everyone quizzing me about our relationship, I didn't really care, I was a _big ol' five _after all but it would make Sheldon ridiculously uncomfortable.

_Knock knock knock, "Penny,"_

_Knock knock knock, "Penny,"_

_Knock knock knock, "Penny." _

To say the least, I was a little wary after the stunt Leonard had pulled but he'd refused to talk to either of us since the whole 'incident' and according to Howard, he was crashing on Leslie Winkle's sofa. I shook my head and tugged open the door. Sheldon was leaning against the doorway, "Hey," I grinned and a little smile sprung onto his face, you have no idea how much I loved doing that.

"Hey," he smiled guiltily like a kid caught doing something he shouldn't, "video game night starts in 15 minutes and I thought we could practice our teamwork before." Hell, he looked so uncomfortable trying to be flirtatious that I couldn't help but laugh.

"C'mon in sweetie," he stepped into the apartment and gently kicked the door shut. Sheldon slouched slightly and pressed a peck to the corner of my mouth before settling down on my couch and picking up my laptop. I grabbed two bottles of water from the fridge and threw myself down onto the couch next to him. Sheldon accepted his bottle of water with a distracted 'thank you'.

"What'cha doin'?" I asked in a sickly sweet voice.

"Amidst my research into how we could play Halo better as a team I stumbled across a programme that allows you to access all the original Nintendo 64 games in their online format, I thought I'd load it onto your computer so you might have a better understanding of the games from vintage video game night."

It was sweet, hell it was the sweetest things anyone had done for me in a long time. Yeah, you can scoff and say that it's just a computer programme but he was doing it for the genuine reason of wanting me to have an easier time fitting in his with friends and not just so he could get in my pants. "Thanks Sheldon, that's so sweet!" I exclaimed and kissed his temple softly. Sheldon froze; we'd never got further than kissing on the lips so it was pretty new I couldn't remember the last time I'd been as close and intimate with someone more than I was with Sheldon. I didn't mean in a sexual way, I mean in the way that Sheldon would come over to watch films then we'd fall asleep on the couch, curled around each other. Or I'd tell him about my day at work as soon as I got home and occasionally I'd make us dinner, but it'd always be spaghetti and little hot dogs or the way that he sent me amusing, albeit I didn't understand half of them, text messages throughout the day. For the first time in a long while I was in a truly happy relationship.

"I like that Penny, it felt nice," Sheldon murmured as a blush crept up his neck and across his cheeks.

"I'm glad," I replied and pressed a second kiss to his temple. He sighed contentedly and placed the laptop back on the coffee table.

"Penny, we need to talk," _oh God. _Those words were renowned for striking fear into the heart of those on the receiving end. But Sheldon didn't understand the clichés associated with dumping someone, I tried to reassure myself, "I haven't been in a proper relationship for a very long time and I've never-" he coughed lightly, "I've never had," another pause, "coit- sexual intercourse." I settled back slightly in my seat and studied him.

"Sheldon, that's fi-" he cut me off,

"Now I understand that you are somewhat an expert in the act of, " he made a sort of grimace expression, "coitus so I hope-" now it was my turn to cut him off.

"No, you listen here Sheldon, I am not an expert and I couldn't give a skinny rat's ass if you're good at _coitus _because I love you!" I shouted and then immediately blushed furiously, the freaking _l-word _had just slipped out and now it sort of hung there in between us.

Then suddenly Sheldon's lips were pressed up against mine and his hands were in my hair. His teeth bit down on my lip as he transferred his weight so he was lying on me with his elbows holding himself up. The kissing slowed until his lips were hovering just above mine and our heavy breathing mingled slightly. Our noses rubbed together and his eyelashes fluttered against my cheeks.

"I love you too Penny."

"_Hey Penny?" I turned my attention away from the ocean. Sheldon had already finished his croissant and was sipping his tea. _

"_Yeah?" _

"_You seemed a bit distant, what were you thinking about?" he looked slightly puzzled as he swallowed a mouthful of his milky tea. _

"_The first time we told each other that we loved each other." A grin lit up his features. _


	6. Chapter 6

_The balcony in our room was pretty secluded and had a beautiful view of the ocean. In the early hours of the morning, long before it got light the moonlight would reflect off the waves making them appear silver and you could see the stars in the sky. After attempting to get to sleep for a couple of hours I'd given up and resorted to just watching the world sleep. _

I raced up the stairs on the way home from work and as soon I was in the door I pulled off my mustard tank and blouse. I'd received a text from Sheldon earlier saying that he'd be round at 6pm to talk, I was ridiculously excited about the prospect of seeing him, Sheldon had been out of town all weekend and some physics-y thing that I hadn't _quite _understood while I helped him pack.

Leonard had returned to 2311N Los Robles, Apartment 4A after he'd turned up at my door with a bunch of flowers and a heartfelt apology. I'd forgiven him but Sheldon was still a little wary of his roommate so it made dinner and video game nights slightly awkward.

I threw my horrid blue skirt into the corner and dived into the bathroom. I shed my underwear and darted into the shower. The hot water scalded my skin and worked through the tangles in my hair. God I was stressed out. I grabbed my vanilla scented shampoo and rubbed it all through the roots of my hair and then made my way down to the tips. It felt so good to finally get clean after a long day of serving at the Cheesecake Factory which normally factored in cleaning up some kid's puke and having my ass slapped by middle aged guys with receding hairlines and a beer guts.

I quickly conditioned my hair and soaped my body up before standing under the water for a couple of minutes lost in thought. I cut the water and wrapped my fluffy blue towel around my head before drying the rest of my body. I checked the clock, 5.38, crap.

In superhuman speed I managed to blow dry my hair and put on my make up. I stood in front of my full to the brim wardrobe. _What on Earth was I going to wear? _My wardrobe was mainly full of shorts and vest tops but I wanted to look nice for seeing Sheldon, of course he wouldn't mind too much but it was more for me. I finally decided on a halter neck black top and pleated emerald velvet skirt. After a bit of deliberation I picked out a pair of black kitten heels with a diamante studded strap. I looked in the mirror and added another layer of mascara before heading out into the lounge. The clock stuck 6 and Sheldon's knock immediately sounded at the door.

_Knock knock knock, "Penny,"_

_Knock knock knock, "Penny,"_

_Knock knock knock, "Penny."_

I opened the door and nearly fainted from surprise. Sheldon was standing in the doorway in a slim fit white shirt, thin black tie and skinny dark wash jeans. His hair had been styled with a little wax so it stood up a little and there was a tiny bit of stubble on his cheeks. He pulled a small bouquet of real flowers and also some Penny Blossoms mixed in.

"Penny, I would be honoured if you would accompany me out to the cheesecake factory on a date," I grinned, he was adorable and also, sexy, "you look beautiful,"

He added with a small smile. I grinned as Sheldon handed me the flowers and took a small step into the apartment. There was a loud noise behind us and we both span around to see Leonard coming out 4A with a bin liner full of trash.

"Hey guys," he took in our outfits and his eyebrows knitted together in confusion, "what are you up to?" Sheldon shot me a panicked glance.

"Sheldon's my date for my friend Natalie's wedding. I was going to go by myself but Sheldon was struggling with some physics problem so I recommended that he came with me to clear his head." I was surprised about how easily the lie came to mind, so was Sheldon, apparently, as he squeezed my hand in thanks from behind his back.

"Oh right, well have a good time then, where's this wedding?" I tried to think of somewhere nearby.

"Glendale," Sheldon answered, I smiled at him, relieved. "We really should be going Penny, goodnight Leonard." We walked down the stairs in silence until we reached the lobby when I burst out laughing and Sheldon laughed in that breathy way of his.

"I think he thought we were eloping for a minute there!" I laughed and Sheldon grinned before taking my hand and slowly entwining his fingers with mine.

"Ready?" He asked and I nodded.

At the cheesecake factory I darted in to make sure that Bernadette wasn't on shift before we were shown to a table for two in the corner of the room. It felt odd, being on a date with _Sheldon Cooper _if you'd told me a few months ago that I'd be dating Sheldon Cooper I would have called you whack-a-doodle. But here I was, it felt very different from how we normally hung out, which was normally in my apartment and felt very private.

_Sheldon Cooper was my boyfriend. _I realised with a shock and looked up at the man across from me. He was taking a sip of his Dr. Pepper and studying me intently. I reached out and took his hand. Sheldon looked pleasantly surprised as he wrapped his long fingers around my hand.

The date seemed to pass in a blur of orders, eating, drinking and laughing. When the night was over and Sheldon had paid the cheque we stepped out onto the street and began walking. The night was kind of warm but there was a light breeze and the sky was completely clear apart from the crescent moon.

I hadn't noticed that I was shivering until Sheldon draped his arm around my shoulder and pulled me against his body in a sort of substitute for him not having a jacket to give me. It felt very peculiar to just be walking down the street cuddled up against Sheldon Cooper, PhD, my boyfriend.

_A blanket appeared over me as if by magic and I looked up to see the sleep mussed form of Sheldon Cooper grinning tiredly at me. He sat down on the balcony floor between my legs and started pointing out the constellations just like he'd done all those years ago in my broken down car. _


	7. Chapter 7

_I rolled over in bed and searched around for Sheldon's hand. I came into contact with his forearm, which was draped over the pillow next to me. His fingers tangled around a few strands of my hair and his cheek pressed against the pillow. His mouth was ever so slightly open and his light brown fringe flopped over one eye. _

"Uhm," Sheldon mumbled against my lips as my tongue gently explored the back of his teeth. I opened my eyes ever so slightly, his sapphire eyes stood out in my half-light of my apartment. He gently tried to push me back by the shoulders but in the darkness his fumbling hands found my _breasts. _

A little voice in the back of my head was giggling in delight at the fact that I had reached 2nd base with none other than Sheldon Cooper. I took a step back so that we were inches apart. "I'm sorry, I overstepped the line." I swallowed.

He looked slightly confused as he looked away and sat down heavily on the sofa, "what do you mean Penny?"

I could feel a lump in my throat and my eyes were burning, "you don't _want _me!" his eyes turned to saucers before a raspy laugh escaped his lips.

There was a slight lull as we just stared at each other.

"Of course I want you Penny, I have for a very long time but I have no idea how,"

"How?"

"How to hold someone and kiss them and," he paused, "make love,"

"Follow my lead." I stepped up so that our bodies were pressed together before going on my tiptoes and kissing him hard. I rested my elbows on his shoulders and wrapped my arms around his head so that my fingers tangled in his short hair.

We stumbled backwards so that my back was pressed against the wall. I moved his hands so that they encircled my waist tightly before transferring my weight onto him and the wall. I slowly lifted up my legs and wrapped them around his waist, "what now?" his voice was quiet, husky.

"Take me to bed," Sheldon nodded and I let my head rest against his neck as he carefully carried me through to the bedroom and stood at the foot of the bed for several moments.

"Penny?" I made a sort of 'mmhmm?" noise in reply as he set me down at the end of the bed.

"I'm in love with you," I shifted so that I was kneeling on the bed and our eyes were level.

"I'm in love with you too Moonpie," then he was lying on top of me and we were kissing periodically with the rest of the time spent mumbling about things that we liked about the other.

"I love your eyes," I whispered and pressed my lips against the area just above his right eyebrow.

"I love your hair," he whispered back. We were still fully clothed but this felt a hundred times more intimate than it ever had when I was actually sleeping with anyone else.

"Ready?" I asked. He nodded.

Afterwards I lay with my head on his chest and my knees tucked up against his side. Sheldon had his eyes closed but I could tell from the slight frown in between his eyebrows that he wasn't asleep, just lost in thought. A smile tugged at the corner of my mouth, it had been amazing. Of course it was Sheldon's first time so it felt kind of awkward and fumbly but there was this kind of element of discovering each other's bodies and rhythms that made it seem all the more passionate.

It had been a completely different scenario to anything I'd encountered with Leonard, which had been almost completely about having sex with each other because we could or because we'd had an argument. With Sheldon it was about being in love with him. I wrapped my arm around his chest and snuggled against him. Sheldon made a kind of contented purring sound.

"You sound like a cat," I giggled.

He raised his eyebrow and sighed, "Don't be absurd Penny, cats _meow_," I started to laugh properly and before long I could feel his chest moving up and down with laughter.

"You are so cute,"

"Penny, I am 32, I am far from cute-" I cut off what was sure to be a somewhat monotonous lecture on how he was 'on a life long trajectory which would include a Nobel Prize so he was definitely not _cute' _with a hand over his mouth. He continued ranting against my hand but at least it was muffled.

"You're becoming less cute by the moment!" I exclaimed. He looked a bit put out as he gently moved my hand away from his mouth and rolled onto his side so that my knees were pressed against his stomach. It was very peculiar seeing Sheldon naked, he looked completely like any other guy without the geeky comic book shirts and undershirts. His cheeks were still flushed and his sandy hair stuck up wildly in every direction.

"Sing me Soft Kitty, Sheldon," I murmured against his ear. He cocked his eyebrow and stared straight into my eyes.

"Penny, you're not sick." I rolled my eyes and drew myself slightly closer to his warm body.

"Lovesick is a type of sick," it was Sheldon's turn to roll his eyes but the corners of his mouth still turned up in a little smile,

"Soft kitty, warm kitty, little ball of fur," he paused for a moment, "happy kitty, sleepy kitty, purr, purr, purr,"

_Sleeping with Sheldon next to me every night had become so natural that I'd almost forgotten what it was like to not have him there. It was even harder for me to remember the days when he was a complete mysophobiac and hated the idea of human contact and intimate situations. Although he was still wary of hugging Raj, Howard and Leonard, it was almost as if he made the exception just for me. I smiled and I rolled across slightly so I was lying curled up against him. His eyes flickered open and he blinked with bleary eyes for a moment before shooting me a sleepy smile. _


End file.
